Donald Gately Ed.D.
Category Archives: Random Thoughts
My COVID-19 Diary: Are we nicer?
Several articles discuss the limits of empathy. Just because we can put ourselves in the shoes of another person doesn’t necessarily mean we will be motivated to do anything about the challenges they face. If, while driving my car, I feel for a person alongside the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel who looks down on his luck, that doesn’t necessarily mean that I’m going to pull over and offer to help. Although there is research about the impact of empathy on our actions, it’s difficult to argue that it is one of those essential ingredients that motivates us to take positive actions towards one another. We may not always act on our feelings of empathy, but when we do act with kindness or generosity towards others, the impulse to do so likely began with a sense of empathy. Continue reading
My COVID-19 Diary: In the Storm
As I looked at that water, I thought to myself, “Oh my goodness, poor Mark. What’s he going to do.” There was a moment when I thought to myself, “I guess they can all move in with us for a while until they get this fixed. We can get cots for the kids. Do we have eggs?” Continue reading
My COVID Diary: The right amount of Hope
I got that feeling of optimism that you get every year on this day when it seems that winter might actually one day come to an end. But, this year it was different, I also began to feel that maybe the pandemic, along with its many restrictions on our lives, might one day come to an end. Continue reading
My COVID 19 Diary: Are you all in?
Regardless of the approach to reopening at your school, you need to commit yourself to your purpose. In my school I am privileged to work with the most amazing staff who are possessed of an unflinching clarity of purpose. They know that our role as educators is to nurture the learning and well-being of our kids, to love them so that they know they belong and that we are their champions. Continue reading
My COVID-19: Focused un-Focused #9
while I love the fact that this thing cleans my whole house while I sit on the couch eating chips, I feel a vague sense of resentment towards it. How does this thing remember which parts of the floor it already vacuumed? There’s no way I could do that. Continue reading
Posted in Personal Best, Random Thoughts, Reflections, Uncategorized
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My COVID-19 Diary: Virtual friends, they’re real!
I’m reflecting on virtual relationships in the educational environment during the quarantine. What are the obstacles teachers face in developing new connections and maintaining the bonds they had built in the first 24 weeks of school? Will it be possible to create the kind of close, supportive relationships that are the bedrock of our school culture next year with a new group of students if we continue virtual school in September? Continue reading
My COVID-19 Diary: Friday un-Focused #8
For various reasons that deserve their own blog post, my wife is not a sports fan. She’ll watch sports if it includes brunch but other than that she just doesn’t see the point. In that respect she’s one of the big winners of the quarantine. Continue reading
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My COVID-19 Diary: You can bring that on the subway?
Only a small percentage of Sunday Routine people surf, but I love the ones who do. There’s nothing cooler in my mind than the image of somebody taking the “A-Train” to Rockaway with an 8-foot surfboard. Continue reading
Posted in Brooklyn, Personal Best, Random Thoughts, Reflections, Uncategorized
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My COVID-19 Diary: Did you read it yet?
There were newsstands on Flatbush Avenue that would get the papers around 11 o’clock so you could buy it on your way home from hanging out with your friends on a Saturday night. Back then, that was a trade secret reserved for “night owls”. Continue reading
My COVID-19 Diary: What’s left to talk about?
Because we consume the same media, Matt and I begin many conversations, “Don’t ruin it for me, I didn’t _____ “ (fill in the blank: “read the article”, “watch the game”, “see the movie”). In Matt’s defense, he is fantastic at this. Continue reading
In the middle of learning - by Donald Gately Ed.D 
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